Time Away
by Babelvr54
Summary: Steph runs away. Ranger is in depression. Babe Story. Complete.


Everything I owned was either packed away or donated or thrown away. I left a wad of cash and my apartment keys on the counter for Dillon, my landlord. I had two letters in my purse, for the two men that are currently in my life.

The past two months had been spent creating another identity for myself and well earning money. It's not like I spend all my money. Seesh, only so many shoes a girl can buy. Ranger left a mission last week. Joe and I were still in the on phase of our relationship, but that's going to change soon.

I pulled my latest POS over to the post office and handed in the two letters, one dedicated to Rangeman and the other to Joseph Morelli. I got back into my car and drove off. Knowing I had trackers on this car, I drove to tasty pastry and parked in my usual spot. Yes I have a usual parking spot at tasty pastry, gosh when did you people get soo nosy?

I stepped into the ally next to tasty pastry, it led to a back street, where I'd parked my other car. Getting in, I drove off into the sunset.

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I bought a house six months ago. It was rundown and needed a lot of renovations, now after all the changes it's been through; looking at it I can't believe that, it's the same house. It was the perfect house, my dream house.

As you enter the house, there is a sun room facing the front yard, as you move in there is the living room with an adjoining powder room, the dining area and then the kitchen with an island. The living room had a stair cast that led to the suite upstairs. The suite had a large king size bed, a sitting area, with television, a minibar and a en-suite bathroom. Here's the best part, I now had a walk-in wardrobe!

I had been mulling over running away for a while now. I was sick of everything and everyone. I know running away from you problems does not make them go away, but god, a girl has her limits. My mother does not love me, I don't love the guy I've been dating on and off for three years, I got covered in garbage last week, I've blown up too many cars to count and last but certainly not the least I'm in love with Ranger.

Yeah I know, huge revelation, I think everyone knows but him. Too bad, for the next six months no more thinking about Trenton. Or its residents. I have made a list of activities I want to do, and guess what the first thing on the list is, I'll give you one guess. You got it, flying. This time instead of jumping off the roof, I'll be jumping off a plane, with a parachute. I should've thought of that the first time, could've saved myself an injury. Huh.

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I got settled into my new home, determined not to waste a moment of my life, I decided to go out clubbing tonight.

Okay, I admit it, whilst shopping for things to go with the house, I also got side-tracked into shopping for things for myself, son now I had an extensive collection of clothing. I had dresses for every occasion I could come up with: dinner with the president, I've got the dress; casual dinner with a superstar, I have the dress. Yeah, a girl can dream. Dinner with a hot Cuban mercenary… don't go there.

After doing the whole getting-ready-for-a-nice-night-out ritual, I put on a knee-length silver-sequence dress; the amount of cleavage showing was adequate without looking slutty. Time to move on with my life.

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Tank POV

It had been a week since Ranger left and two days since Steph left. I have no idea where she found these skills but she'd dropped off the face of the earth without a clue. Her car was found parked at tasty pastry with the keys inside. No one saw her leave. The next day there was a letter dedicated to Rangeman.

_Dear Merrymen,_

_By the time you receive this letter, I will be far away from Trenton. I cannot tell you where I am going, but I will tell you why. I'm sick of being a joke, whilst you guys are very supportive and helpful, the rest of Trenton is not. _

_I don't believe I've ever taken the time to say this but Thank You, for everything. I love you guys you're like my brothers._

_Now I know you are probably going to disregard this but please don't look for me. It's taken a lot of hard work to hide my footprints; I don't want to be found. This does not mean I'm never coming back, I will, I just need time by myself, to be myself. I'll write to you another next week._

There was another letter in the envelope, dedicated to Ranger, which since he wasn't here, I took the liberty to read.

_Dear Ranger,_

_Apparently, it turns out that everyone knows this but you so, I thought I might as well fill you in on it. I am in love with you. I don't know when it happened, but it did. Since I know that you don't return the emotion, I've decided to take the easy way out and written you a letter. _

_I've left Trenton, you probably know that by now, I'm hoping to get over you by the time you return, I am not sure yet if I will be successful but trying and failing is better than failing to try._

_You once told me that there is no price between us, turns out there is, the price is my heart. My request to you is for to not take the liberty to touch me or kiss me when I return. I have also decided to quit bounty hunting. I have not yet decided what I am going to do or when I'm going to return._

_Please do not believe that I left Trenton because of you. I left because of what my life had become, namely, a mess. I hope that one day you find some you love, that loves you back. I don't think I'm that person._

_Have a good life, Ranger. The fact that I call you Ranger should've warned me that I'm only a part of your professional life and nothing else. The heart wants what it wants…_

_Good Bye Ranger._

I am not crying, there's something in my eye. F***! This is so messed up. Damn, I have to find her, she's right; I'm going to disregard her message about not looking for her. I have about five days before Ranger gets back. He's landing in DC in two days. F***.

I stepped out of my office to read the merry men letter to the men.

"Boys I have a letter from Steph" and handed the letter over to Bobby as he was closest to me. His sentiments after reading the letter were the same as mine "F***!" he handed the letter over to Lester. There was no reaction from him. That concerned me. Each man read the letter and let out an expletive. Then everyone got back to work.

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Three days later

Ranger landed in DC today and there is still no trace of Steph. Shit. There seems to be absolutely no trace of Stephanie Plum. Where the hell did she learn to hide her tracks so well? Oh Right, right here at Rangeman. I never knew she learned so much from us.

My cell phone ringing brought me out of my thoughts. Ranger. Damn.

"Yo" Yeah that's right, act cool.

"Report" he barked

"Everything's under control at Rangeman" Yeah just ignore the big neon pink elephant in the room.

"Steph?" he asked. I was hoping to ignore that issue.

"Uh… she ran away" I stated.

"Then find her" he replied and hung up. He took that better than I thought he would.

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Steph POV

It's been a week since I left Trenton and I'm actually starting to feel good about myself. Every morning, I wake up with the sun and go running around the block. I wave at the old lady that lives two houses down and she smiles back at me, I pass the bakery and get a chocolate crescent from Linda, the owner, then I pass the house with the guard dog as he barks a greeting at me and then I'm home.

Then after a shower, I go back to the bakery, where Linda pulls me back to the kitchen and I keep her company as she teaches me how to make some of the goodies. After that I pretty much roam around the town and grab lunch. By the time I get home its evening, when Matt, whom I met whilst clubbing the first night, joins me. We make dinner together; he's a chef, and then either talk, go for a walk or go out. This routine went on for three more weeks before I decided to write a letter to Rangeman, so that they know I'm safe.

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Tank POV – The Day Ranger Gets Back

No trace. Not a fu**ing trace. I can't believe that a white girl from the burg has a building full of mercenaries, expert government tracers that track down world class criminals, running wild from frustration. It's like she stopped existing after Tasty Pastry.

I am currently waiting for Ranger at the airport, hoping his flight is running late. I'm a pussy. Speak of the devil and there he is. Shit.

He looked at me before silently walking past to the exit. I followed. He held his arm out for the keys and I handed them over. We silently slid into the turbo and took off toward Rangeman. The silence was killing me.

OoO

"Did you find Steph?" he asked.

"No, it's like she stopped existing man. We've followed every lead, except there is no Fu**ing lead. In her letter she said she'd write another one so that we know she's safe. We haven't received a letter yet." I stated everything I knew.

"Give me the letter." His face and voice were emotionless.

I handed the letters over. He read the Merry men letter first, his face still carefully blank. Then I watched as he read his own letter, there was only way to describe the emotion on his face, pain. I could tell the moment he read about her getting over him, the next thing I saw was a fist coming toward my face. Then he proceeded to thrash his office. Bobby burst into the room, looking at his face I could tell he was questioning me whether to sedate him. I nodded.

He came back a moment later with Cal and Manny. They moved in to hold him down as Bobby sedated him. He stopped struggling and hung limply.

"We need to get him under control, what happened?" he asked. I pointed to the letter that was lying on the floor. Bobby read the letter and repeated his earlier words "Fu**!"

"We need to restrain him, he's only going to be more pissed when he realises what happened." I ordered.

I dialled the number for Dr Madison, the Rangeman shrink. He picked up on the second ring "Hello?"

"Sir, this is Tank from Rangeman."

"Yes, what can I do for you?"

"Ranger just returned from a mission, and received the news that his love interest ran away. He thrashed his office. His is currently restrained and sedated."

"I will come over. Put him on a bed and make sure his restraints are padded, so he doesn't injure himself."

"Yes Sir" I hung up

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4 weeks and 3 days since Steph left Trenton.

It has now been four weeks since she left. I never thought one person could affect so many lives, but that was before I met one Stephanie Plum. Trenton just feels sad without her in it. Ranger has sunk into depression and doesn't respond to anything. He eats when he is forced, sleeps when he is forced. Other than that he just seems to be staring off into space.

There is an envelope on my desk that has been here since yesterday that I'm afraid to open. I know it's from her. I sighed and opened the envelope.

_Dear Merry men,_

_I just wanted to let you know that I am safe. Please don't even try tracing this letter back, but because I know you will anyway, I'll save you the trouble. You will find that it leads back to New York, Manhattan Mall. I will be coming back to Trenton in a month. I love you all and miss you very much. You should receive a parcel with the letter. _

Just then I heard a knock on my office door. Lester stepped in "There's a parcel for Rangeman." He stated.

"I just got a letter from Steph, she sent the parcel." I answered back. At the mention of Steph, his eyes went sad. She had us all wrapped around her finger, Ranger was on the top, Lester is a close second.

I took a cutter from my desk and opened the parcel. It held a variety of things. I took out a blue shirt that was on the top. It said 'I'm just a big guy with a bigger heart', it was labelled with 'Tank'.

"Call all the guys to the conference room." He nodded and left.

I picked up the box and moved to the conference room. The men were already assembled. I handed the letter to my left so the men could read it and pass it along.

I then pulled out each item in the box and handed it to its rightful owner. Each present was thoughtful and reflected character. The last one was a box without a label and I knew exactly who it was for.

"Dismissed" I barked and left the room. I took the elevator to seventh floor. Entering the apartment I saw Ranger staring out the window. I sat down next to him and spoke softly "She sent something for you." He just looked at me blankly. I held up the box. With a shaking hand he took the box from me and opened it. There was a pendent with a batman symbol and a note.

Then for the first time in my life I saw my best friend cry. He hugged the pendent to himself and cried. I am trained for every situation, trained to withstand every form of torture, but this ripped me apart.

The door opened and Ella stepped in. She looked at us both and did what only a woman can do, give comfort. She came over and hugged us both as we wailed like babies. Not many people knew this, but Ella is Ranger's aunt. So she sat down between us and pulled Ranger half into her lap. She \said soothing phrases in Spanish to calm down her nephew.

I opened the note to read what she'd written to Ranger.

_Dear Ranger,_

_I tried forgetting you, trying to get over you, turns out I can't. I'm sorry I broke your rules. I'm sorry I fell in love with you, but I cannot be sorry to know you. I am returning to Trenton in a month, I hope we can go back to being friends, my heart still wants more, my head knows I can't have more. I cannot live without you in my life, but when I return if you feel the need to distance yourself from me, please tell me, I will leave._

_Steph_

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Steph POV

The past month, I've done everything on my list. I've done Skydiving, deep sea diving, scuba diving, paragliding, canoeing and fishing. I am ready to return to Trenton. I've rented out a furnished apartment that is about two blocks from Rangeman. I took a direct plane from Miami to Trenton.

From all the time I've spent in the Miami sun, my skin is now tanned. Standing outside Rangeman I'm now a bundle of nerves. I stepped into the building before I could get lost into my own thoughts. I stepped into the lobby where Manny was manning the front desk. He looked up and froze. Then he attacked me. He was hugging me so hard I'm pretty sure I cracked a rib. He finally let go with a huge smile on his face.

I took the elevator to five where the entire company was waiting for me. I was hugged and passed around the room. Then the questions started. I put my hand up "Where's Ranger? I only want to repeat this story once."

Tank spoke up "Come with me Steph." I followed him to the elevator.

We went up to seven in silence. The elevator opened and we stepped out. He opened the apartment door and took me to Ranger's bedroom where he was staring at the ceiling.

He didn't even look at me. Tank started speaking, he told me about Ranger thrashing his office and then just sliding into depression. By the end of it I was crying. This was entirely my fault. If I'd just admitted that I'd loved him to his face from the start, none of this would've happened.

I walked over to him and sat down next to him on the bed. He finally looked at me. For a moment he looked shocked to see me there, like he was seeing a ghost. He then reached his hand to touch my thigh. He sat up and then with his thumb wiped a tear that had escaped.

"Babe… you're really here." He asked.

"Yes I'm here." Then I couldn't take it anymore, I reached out and hugged him. His arms came around me and pulled me into him.

"Babe, I love you. Please don't leave me."

"I love you too Ranger."

"Call me Carlos."

"I love you Carlos." His smile was so bright it could've replaced the sun.

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It's been a week since I returned. The entire week was spent on seventh floor, we only left the bedroom for food. Carlos proposed last night. He wants to get married Right now. We're meeting Tank and Lester at the court in an hour and I don't have a dress.

Finally I picked out a peach floor length dress with a choker neck and bare shoulders and lace back. I paired it with white strappy sandals. I put on light 'natural' makeup and I was ready.

Two hours later I am a married woman.

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Carlos wanted to see the house I stayed in, while I was in Miami. We decided to spend the two weeks of our honeymoon there. All was well in my world; I just wish I'd have saved us the drama and most of all the pain. I realise I've always tried to run away from my problems instead of facing them,, which would've made everyone's life easier.

This story has been in my thoughts for the past month, except Ranger is in a worse condition and Steph doesn't return for six months. Please review. Good or Bad. Thank you.


End file.
